Get a look inside Scottsdale’s new OdySea Aquarium

By Corbin Carson | September 9, 2016 at 5:00 amUPDATED: September 9, 2016 at 11:22 am

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The new OdySea Aquarium is now open in Scottsdale, so what exactly does it take to keep more than 30,000 sea creatures in the desert?

“We have over 40 animal care specialists that work around the clock, 24 hours a day,” said Greg Charbeneau, vice-president and general manager of the OdySea Aquarium. “They care for them behaviorally, they care from a medical standpoint, [as well as] nutritional.”

All of the habitats have massive filtration behind the scenes, he said, and there’s even a team of people dedicated just to keep that system operational.

OdySea has to constantly recycle the fresh and salt water which is specially made onsite.

“What’s unique about OdySea Aquarium is that it was built from the inside-out,” Charbeneau said. “All of the habitats, the main structures of the habitats, had to be built, then a massive crane flew in the acrylic viewing panels.”

Then they put up the walls and ceiling around it, all without any straight lines.

“No tape measures or rulers could be used, they had to use this fancy GPS, BIM-map system where these guys would actually walk around with iPads and computers and actually design and build through the computer,” he said.

The aquarium is considered to be the largest in the southwest as it is 200,000 square feet and has two million gallons of water, 60 exhibits, over 30,000 sea creatures and over 500 species.